Guinness @ Legends in NYC

Well hello there! And a happy Rutgers Bowl game day to you. We're here live at Legends on 33rd St in New York right by the Empire State Building with a ton of other RU fans warming up for the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium today. With a ton of beer options (and after a few bloody marys) I decided to start off with a Guinness. It came out in a regular pint glass and looked divine with a perfect white head sitting atop a black body. Taste was smooth and delicious with the roastiness coming through and a slight bitter taste. Definitely a top 5 Guinness, but not enough to take over the top spot from Dublin House or the #2 spot from Tierney's. Overall though a great pour that is worthy of your attention. Go RU!!

2011 Beer of the Year

First of all, Merry Christmas to everyone! I hope you all are having a great holiday season and have a Happy New Year. With 2011 coming to an end, I have decided that it is appropriate to name a 2011 Born to Brew Beer of the Year. Expect an announcement in the upcoming days and, as always, your input is welcome. Cheers!

Guinness @ Tierney's

So delicious, enough said...

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from Stanley and I at Born 2 Brew! Santa (my wife) bought us a mini kegerator! Currently on tap, Kostritzer Black Lager.

Winter Rental Black Lager

Winter Rental is East Coast Beer Co.'s winter beer, appropriately named based off of their American Pilsner called Beach Haus. It poured a dark brown with a nice white head that stayed around a bit. Smell was mostly roasted malt with some hints of chocolate. Taste was hoppy at first before balancing out with roasted malt and a little bit of chocolate. It also had a slight coffee taste to it, but I think it was just the roastiness as opposed to actually being brewed with coffee beans. For a darker, bitter beer it had a smooth aftertaste and the mouthful wasn't too heavy. A nicely balanced beer that (like Beach Haus) doesn't blow you away with anything, but is solid and easy to drink.

Kane Brewing Company

Took a trip to Kane Brewing Company today and had an amazing time. Tried all four of their current beers on tap (3 of the 4 have been reviewed on here already) and took a stroll around the brewery. Check out the videos below to see where we went, including a trip into the freezer where they store all their kegs!

From talking to the President of the brewery, Michael Kane, we found out that they will be coming out with a Belgian Red (which we were able to try while it was in the fermenting stage) and an Imperial IPA in the near future. Definitely looking forward to that. They also had Drift Line aged with coffee on tap (I was lucky enough to be the last one to have it since my growler fill kicked the keg), which was absolutely delicious. It was basically Drift Line (which is amazing in itself) with a very smooth coffee taste to it. An easy to drink brown ale, that finished with a great coffee taste - probably my favorite beer out of the four.

The brewery in itself was hopping, with a ton of people coming in for their weekly growler fills and a bunch of new visitors discovering one of Monmouth County's hidden gems. Overall, a great time and definitely something that you all should try out. The brewery is open on Saturdays from 12-5 for tours/tastings. Stay tuned for more visits/information out of Kane Brewing Company in the future!

Videos from today:

Kane Brewing Company Intro

Kane Brewing Company Inside

Kane Brewing Freezer


Some pictures from today:

Kegs and the new tanks they just brought in from Brooklyn

Kegs

Freezer Door

Imperial Stout in the barrel

Michael Kane (President of Kane Brewing Company)

Goose Island Brewery in Clybourn Overview

Now that I've posted everything, I wanted to comment a bit on the brewery. First off, its a brewpub that brews on the premises for the brewpub only. They do bottling and beers produced for distribution out of another brewery location in Chicago. This means that everything there is really fresh and was made specifically for people at the pub. Secondly, its their original location (they have a second one in Wrigleyville) and has been around since 1988 when it was the first real brewpub to open in Chicago and start a craft beer movement there. Third, the beer is delicious. They have about 20 beers on tap (unfortunately I only had time to try 7), which is pretty crazy. The tour/tasting was very informative and taught me a lot about the brewery and their strategies. The biggest thing that I took away was that they want to brew beers that are drinkable and able to be drank in multiple quantities. And no, I don't mean like how you can drink 15 coors lights in one hour, I mean quality beers and can be drank in large quantities. If any kind of beer tests this strategy to me its an IPA, and their IPA is definitely one of the most drinkable I've had. If you're in Chicago try it out, they also serve food there which I didn't try, but looked good.

For our local followers, I've heard that Goose Island will soon become much more readily available in New Jersey which is great news. I also have seen it in New York City a lot lately. Once I see it in NJ, I'll post where you can find it.

See below for link to the Clybourn Brewery website.

http://www.gooseisland.com/pages/clybourn_brewpub/65.php

Cheers!

Goose Island Pictures

Some pictures from our trip to the Goose Island Clybourn Brewery in Chicago:

Goose Island Clybourn Brewery flag

Cinders IPA aging in barrel. Dated 3/11/10

Tasting

Outside the brewery

Entrance

Tap handle we brought back to display in Gallagher's Pub!

Goose Island India Pale Ale

Been trying to catch up on some things after getting home so I'm a bit late getting this stuff up, but here it is. I've had the Goose Island IPA before, but decided to wait until I had it on tap at the brewery to review. It has always been a favorite of mine, but it was even better being so fresh. Pours a hazy reddish copper with a nice sized head that left beautiful streaks of lacing down the glass while drinking. Aroma was very delightful to the nose, with citrus nodes being mixed with roasted hops. Pretty standard scents for an IPA, but nothing too much on either end. Taste was citrusy at first, followed by some delicious roasted hops that had a nice bitterness. Mouthful was medium with a good amount of carbonation. Its not an IPA loaded with crazy citrus flavors or tons of hops, but its almost perfectly balanced between the two. This balance makes it a very drinkable beer for IPA lovers and one of my top 3 favorite IPAs of all time. Great job done by Goose Island.

Goose Island Porter

Didn't catch the exact name, but was definitely a porter. Coffee and chocolate prevalent in scent and taste. Thin in mouthful.

Jimmy's Red Farmhouse (Red Saison)

Most bizarre of the six we tried. Smell was a mix of a ton of stuff and reminded me of sour lemons mixed with malt. Taste did not match the smell, but rather had a sweet floral taste to it that was almost like a wheat beer even though this isn't one. Very odd beer, but extremely interesting.

Goose Island Rye Pale Ale

Overly citrusy in the nose, more than any other beer I've had. Taste was very citrusy at first before rye and hops kicked in late for bitter finish. My favorite one so far. Almost like an IPA but not as hoppy and with some different tastes being a rye beer.

Goose Island Naughty Goose

Very malty in the smell and taste. Brown sugar being the most distinguishable. Again, lacked hops in the finish, but wasn't bad.

Goose Island Alt Bier

Also had a slight coffee aroma and smokiness to its scent and taste. Very smooth and crisp, also did not have a lot of hops.

Goose Island 80 Schilling

Very smoky and toasted in the nose and taste. No hoppiness (its a Scotch Ale), but enough bitterness to balance out the malty sweetness. Solid scotch ale.

Goose Island Brewery

We had a great time at Goose Island today. It started with a delicious pint of IPA, followed by a tour of the brewery and tasting session that was very informative. During the tasting we tried six different beers and I took some short notes on all six which is what I'll be posting now. I definitely recommend checking out the brewery if you're ever in Chicago!

Update from Goose Island Brewery in Chicago

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7-iMiXL0_E&sns=em

Meantime Brewing Company IPA

This was the second IPA I had at Jake's at the suggestion of our waitress. It's a very rare and hard to find IPA that was described as "hoppy wine". Its from a cask so it poured with very little head and a decent aroma of mostly malty orange peel mixed with some hops. Taste was very malty I thought, but smooth and finished with some great hoppiness. Nodes of citrus throughout, but more of an orange peel taste than a straight orange or grapefruit sweetness. It was medium bodied and not overly carbonated at all. Overall, a very interesting beer that I'd recommend trying if you can find it.

Now on to the goose!

Central Waters Glacial Trail IPA

Stopped into Jake Melinick's Corner Tap for a bite to eat and some cold brews before heading over to Goose Island Brewery. First of the two IPAs I enjoyed was a traditional American IPA. It poured a burnt orange with a solid head. Aroma was hoppy with a tad of citrus as was the taste. Nothing over the top in terms of citrus flavor and hoppiness, with most of the taste being earthy. Not a bad IPA, but definitely not a super hoppy one that I'd recommend to hopheads.

Loaded Landshark @ Margaritaville Bar & Grill Chicago

Sure, I've already reviewed Landshark, but not a "Loaded Landshark", which consists of a Landshark Lager with a shot of Margaritaville Lime Tequila poured in it. It is absolutely delicious and warms your body right up when coming in from the cold. I would recommend replicating this simple recipe at home, as I plan on doing myself. Fins Up!

Guinness @ Fado Irish Pub in Chicago

Stumbled upon this bar after leaving The Local. Its a chain Irish pub, but is very cozy and has a local Irish bar feel to it rather than a boring chain. Mickey, our bartender, poured a beautiful pint for me that had the perfect white head on it. Taste was very, very smooth and served at a nice cool temperature. It was not overly bitter and didn't seem too thin in the mouthful. Definitely a top 5 pint, but not quite on the level of the one I had at The Dublin House (Red Bank, NJ) due to it being a bit watery. Great Irish pub though and a delicious Guinness. Slainte!

Two Brother's North Wind Imperial Stout

A little back story. If you watch the show "Bar Rescue" on Spike, there was an episode about a bar in Chicago that was renovated called Blue Frog 22. They changed the name to The Local after the renovation and after watching it, we decided that when we were in Chicago we had to go. Walked in there today around 1:30 and couldn't of been more disappointed. Service was slow, place was kind of run down (not in a good, dive bar way) and there was loud rap music blasting for the short time we were there. Mimi should be ashamed!!

As for the beer, Two Brother's is a local brewery that had two beers on tap at The Local, an imperial stout and a belgian wheat I think. I opted for the stout of course. Poured into a snifter glass and had a little coffee aroma, but mostly hops and slight alcohol. Taste was malty with a little chocolate and coffee in the front, but finished very alcoholy. It is 8 percent abv, but they could have hid the alcohol a bit more. Was disappointed that it didn't have more coffee, chocolate or some other flavor, but it did pack some nice hops towards the middle. Overall, not a bad stout, but nothing to write home about (literally I'm in Chicago and there will be no letters sent about this one). Cheers!

Best Tap Handle Ever

Goose Island 312 Urban Wheat Ale. Didn't try the beer, but the tap handle is literally a telephone.

Guinness @ Le Bar in the lobby of the Sofitel Hotel Chicago

Never been more surprised in my life. I ordered this Guinness as a night cap after a long night of drinking figuring it would be decent, but subpar and I was shocked! While it isn't a top tier pour, this Guinness was solidly smooth with no hiicups on the pour. Great job by the bartender taking the time to pour it, which resulted in a delightful pint. Was it perfect? Hell no! But it was definitely a top 10 Guinness from the windy city. Cheers!

Goose Island Beer Company

Stanley and I are very excited to announce that Born 2 Brew will be taking it's first road trip this weekend to Chicago. In addition to the beers that we will be trying all weekend, we have a reservation at 1:30pm (CST) on Sunday for a tour and tasting at Goose Island Beer Company located in the heart of Lincoln Park, Chicago. The only beer that I have had from Goose Island is their IPA which was absolutely delicious (and is actually served at Yankee Stadium). Stay tuned for pictures, reviews and possibly a video or two from the Windy City!

Goose Island Beer Company

Harpoon Grateful Harvest Cranberry Ale

Happy early Thanksgiving! In the spirit of the holiday, I'm reviewing one of the only Thanksgiving themed beers that I have seen. In fact, its the only one I've seen. Harpoon's Grateful Harvest is a Cranberry Ale that raises money for food banks by having $1 of every 6-pack sold go to local foodbanks. At $8.99 for a sixer at the Tribeca Whole Foods, it made the high price somewhat tolerable which was much more than the beer itself. I drank it straight out of the bottle on the train so I don't have much insight on the color, but from reading other reviews I know it pours a reddish brown with a slight head. The smell was very bland - malt, some hops and a slight scent of cranberry that could even be from my imagination. Not much going on. The taste really surprised me, it was very beery and not very cranberry-y. It was actually quite disappointing because of the lack of cranberry flavor and the overpowering metallic taste that it had. I felt like I was drinking a cheap beer out of a can, more than a craft brewed bottle. The aftertaste was slightly better with a tad of hops mixed with some tart from the cranberries. Overall, I was very let down by Harpoon which was shocking because normally they are on top of their game. If not for the strong finish and turkey pictured on the 6-pack box, I'd probably nominate it for worst beer of the year. Outside of the $1 donation to the foodbank per sixer, Grateful Harvest Cranberry Ale is not a beer to be thankful for at all.

Kane Brewing Company Drift Line - Oatmeal Brown Ale

After a two month hiatus from the blog, Kane Brewing Company is back!  Unfortunately I have still not made it to the brewery for one of their Saturday tastings/tours, but it is on my to-do list before 2011 comes to an end.  Stay tuned for a visit to Kane in mid-December if all goes well.  As for their newest beer which I had on tap at Stuff Yer Face in New Brunswick last night, Drift Line Oatmeal Brown Ale is an absolute gem.  While I usually go crazy over IPAs, Double IPAs and anything else that is overly hoppy, in recent weeks I have been moving my focus towards porters, stouts and brown ales and it has been a delightful change.  Kane’s Drift Line pours a very, very dark brown that basically looks black with a thumb-sized cream head on the top.  It has a delicious scent of chocolate and roasted malts that don’t overpower the nose, but give it a solid sweetness.  The taste is dark chocolate mixed with something else that I was having a tough time figuring out, might be hazelnut, but I’m not completely sure – regardless, it was delicious.  It finished with a bit of coffee/oatmeal flavor and some slight hops kicking in late to balance it out perfectly.  It had a medium body that wasn’t too heavy, but carried enough to make it a smooth beer perfect for the colder weather.  Overall, another great beer from Kane Brewery, who continues to impress me with everything they put out.  For anyone looking to try it, it’s on tap all over Shore/Central/North New Jersey and I have linked their website below for more updates.  Cheers!

 

http://www.kanebrewing.com/

 

 

Captain Lawrence Pale Ale

Had this Pleasantville, NY beer on tap at the newly opened Tap House in Tribeca. The Tap House is your typical Tribeca bar trying to push craft beers on a group of yuppies that craves Stella and Blue Moon. It features an awkward set-up inside, but a solid group of beers on tap (for $7 a pint of course).

CL's Pale Ale poured a very dark copper/reddish color with a solid head that remained throughout the majority of the pint and left a lot of lacing. Smell was mostly malty sweetness with a bit of breadiness mixed in and some slight hops. First taste was sweet malt and very bready with a bit of hops kicking in late and giving it a slight floral/citrus after taste. A bit bitter on the finish, but not too much for a pale ale. Usually I am critical of pale ales that lack hops, but because of the great flavor and balance that this one had I can't complain.
It was a very smooth and easy to drink pale ale that was well balanced and didn't pack too many hops to make you think it was a boderline IPA. A solid beer from Captain Lawrence.

Harvest Moon Hodgepodge Black Ale

This one was my favorite of the 3. It looked almost like a stout or porter with a jet black color and nice white head on top. Smell was very sweet - chocolate and maybe brown sugar (?). Taste was as expected, sweet and chocolatey with a slight smokey aftertaste. It actually packed a ton of different flavors, all sweet, before ending with a smooth smokey flavor mixed with a bit of alcohol taste. Definitely a keeper and a great late Fall/Winter beer that I recommend to all. Great job Harvest Moon!

Side note - a shout out to my wife Meredith who deals with me typing on my blackberry for these posts when we are out. Today is 2 yrs since we got engaged and she was nice enough to agree to go to the Rutgers basketball game tonight after a romantic day. I love you Mer!

Harvest Moon Elmes' Mild Manor

The second beer of the night at Harvest Moon is an English style. It poured a dark brown with a slight head. Smell was very bland, with a slight floral aroma. Taste was also a bit bland (keep in mind I had the double IPA before though) with some caramel nodes coming through. It didn't have much hops, but was extremely drinkable and mixed well with the burger I ordered. Probably wouldn't have it again, but not a bad beer to try if you're at Harvest Moon and want something to wash your dinner down with.

Harvest Moon Hop2it Double IPA

Coming to you live from Downtown New Brunswick, just off the campus of Rutgers University its Born 2 Brew at Harvest Moon Brewery. The first beer of the night is a double IPA. Harvest Moon has put out a Double IPA before called Hop Squared, but this one is a bit different. It poured a typical orangey brown with a nice head. Smell is a lot of citrus, grapefruit mostly, with some pine mixed in. Taste was delicious, citrus and malty sweetness at first with some earth nodes and hops kicking in late to create a nice balance. I was slightly disappointed that it didn't have more hops, but it was a very balanced IPA that was pretty drinkable. Definitely preferred that Havest Moon Hop Squared more, but this one is also delightful.

Guinness @ 381 Main in Little Falls

I didn't expect to find a good Guinness at this trendy sports bar in Little Falls, as the best pints are usually poured in old Irish dive bars. However, this pint wasn't so bad. The pour was slightly questionable, as the bartender did a 3 pour technique. She filled the glass up about a third of the way, stopped, then another third, stopped, then topped it off. Never seen this used before and I'm not sure what effect it had on the beer itself, but it did leave a head that was way too big and airy. I think the speed of the beer coming out of the tap also had a part in the airy head. After getting past the head though, the taste was solid. A little too cold for my liking, but not terrible. Overall, a solid pint at a place I never thought I'd get one at. Cheers!

Firestone Walker's Reserve Robust Porter

Now that the colder days of Fall and Winter are approaching (and the pumpkin beer competition has ended), stouts and porters will be taking a more prominent role on the blog. As the loyal B2B readers know, my favorite beer is Firestone Walker Double Jack (a Double IPA), so when I saw Firestone's Robust Porter available I had to give it a try. I ran into this porter on tap at Texas Arizona in Hoboken after a long day in the office. It poured black with some reddish hints and a really nice tan head that diminished a bit over the course of consumption. The aroma was quite delightful - dark chocolate and coffee mostly with some slight smokiness as well. The taste was similar to the aroma with the coffee and roasted malts coming through strongest followed by some lighter nodes of dark chocolate. It didn't over power with sweetness like some porters and had a really smooth finish with no alcoholy taste (its 5.8 abv). It was also creamy and rich in the mouth and had a good balance of carbonation. Overall, a really solid beer that's easy to drink and has some great flavors. If you're looking for a really sweet chocolate stout then this one definitely isn't for you, but if you're sitting inside by the fire on a cold Fall/Winter night and want a porter that you can throw back a few of, this is you're beer. Another great job by Firestone.

2011 Born to Brew Best Pumpkin Beer

http://www.youtube.com/rwatch?v=BCY2u7EZQHE&sns=em

Unfortunately the Pumpkin Beer Awards video is too big to be posted directly on the blog. Please visit the above link to see it.

Paddy's Pumpkin Porter by Gallagher's Brewing Co.

At long last the porter is here and ready to be reviewed! From a 12oz bottle it poured a reddish black, but lacked a real head which was a bit disappointing. Smell was really impressive, lots of nutmeg and cinnamon. Taste was mostly spices with the nutmeg being the most prominent. Was a little plastic tasting which was a drawback, but the finish was very nice with some spices mixed in. Overall, a very light porter that is easy to drink and has some impressive spices to it. Definitely not a contender, but after the failed stout that was put out by GBC, this is a good improvement.

Shipyard Brewing Co Pugsley's Signature Series Smashed Pumpkin

The first of two last minute entries is another pumpkin ale from Shipyard. This ale is more of an imperial pumpkin ale though and comes in at 9.0% abv. Smashed Pumpkin is served in a 22oz bomber with a really cool label that features a light jack-o-lantern and bright orange label. Although its not as creative as the label on Shipyard's Pumpkinhead Ale, its a close second. The brew itself poured a burnt orange with a nice head. Smell was actually surprisingly light for an imperial, with some cinnamon and nutmeg coming through strongest. Taste started off as your typical pumpkin ale with spices, but then moved into some nodes of real pumpkin before finishing with some grassy/earthy hops. It is absolutely delicious. I also really love the mouth feel which is pretty thick and almost creamy. The finish is a bit alcoholy, but not as bad as other imperial pumpkin ales (Weyerbacher) and the slight hops at the end are a great touch. This is definitely a top contender! Will it be enough to take the crown and win Shipyard a free brewery tour of Gallagher's Pub? We will find out in a little over 90 minutes!

Geary's London Style Porter

Grabbed a six-pack of this porter at Bottle King in Glen Ridge because it was the beer of the month. Label was a bit too British for my liking, but I thought that this Maine brewery wouldn't disappoint. It poured dark black with a nice tan head. Smell was chocolatey with some slight coffee scents. Taste was also chocolatey with some coffee/expresso nodes and some nice hops kicking in later on. Its very light for a porter, maybe a little too light, but makes it easy to drink which isn't a bad thing. Overall .. I like! Definitely makes me want to try some more beers by Geary's. Cheers!

Gallagher's Brewing Co. Update

Paddy's Pumpkin Porter was moved to the refrigerator last night. There will be a limited supply released in the Blue Lot before the Rutgers game on Saturday.

This is the third beer that GBC had put out after releasing a pilsner (not bad) and stout (terrible) in early 2011. This pumpkin porter was brewed with pumpkin pie puree and spices. The goal is for it to be an easy drinking pumpkin porter that tastes like pumpkin pie in a bottle. The hope is that it doesn't cause projectile vomiting on consumption.

Stay tuned for a review.

Troegs Dead Reckoning Porter

Forgot to post this one from over the weekend.

Grabbed a 6-pack of this Maryland born porter at Stirling Wines in Stilring, NJ. It poured and smelt like a typical chocolate porter - black with a sweet scent of cocoa. Taste was very chocolatey and sweet with some nice hops kicking in at the end. It was a bit too carbonated for my liking, but overall I thought that it was a very solid porter. Definitely recommend.

Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA

I was hesitant to post about this IPA because I've had it multiple times before, but since a large part of this is about introducing beers to people, I'll throw it out there. By far one of my favorite IPAs, Dogfish Head 60 Minute is simply a very drinkable and solid IPA. It doesn't try to blow you away with tons of hops that dry your mouth out, but rather balances the hops and malt almost to perfection creating a delicious brew. It pours a burnt orange color with a decent head and a hoppy smell. As I said, its very well balanced so the taste is floral and some citrus nodes to start before finishing with some powerful (but not overbearing) hops. This is a great IPA for both hopheads and beginning IPA drinkers to try because of its drinkability and solid balance. While I certainly prefer Dogfish Head's 90 and 120 Minute IPAs over the 60, I'd recommend this one for all. Cheers guys!

Southampton Pumpkin Ale

The second Pumpkin Ale of the night comes from a Publick House on Long Island called Southampton. They brew a few different beers including this fall seasonal which I picked up, again, at the Tribeca Whole Foods. This pumpkin ale poured a dark amber and had a decent head on it. Smell was spices - cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and also some pumpkin. A very solid smelling beer. Taste started off nutmeg, then went sweet with some cinnamon kicking in before finishing smoothly with a nice pumpkin taste, some earthy nodes and more cinnamon. A very well-balanced and easy to drink pumpkin that balances out spices, pumpkin, hops and drinkability almost perfectly. I'm definitely putting this one in that top category, its a contender.

Blue Point Brewing Company Pumpkin Ale

After a tour of Newark's Irish Pubs, its time to get back on track and focus on the Pumpkin beers. I picked up a six pack of Blue Point's Pumpkin Ale yesterday at the Whole Foods in Tribeca to start the pumpkin reviews back up. Poured it into a 16oz glass and it came out burnt orange like usual, with a nice head that lasted for a bit. It had a very spicy smell with mostly cinnamon and nutmeg coming out. Taste was very spicy, again mostly cinnamon, nutmeg and some other sweet malty nodes. Very smooth and easy to drink beer with some slight hops at the end. Nothing too crazy, reminds me of another pumpkin ale I've had, but I can't put my finger on which one. Solid fall seasonal, but doesn't separate itself from the pack.